


Shooting in Paradise

by left_to_write



Category: Death in Paradise
Genre: F/M, Love Triangles, Romance, Romantic Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-24
Updated: 2015-04-14
Packaged: 2018-03-19 02:00:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,862
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3592050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/left_to_write/pseuds/left_to_write
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sainte Marie has a thrill when it is used as a film location.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story is complete invention (ie not based on any storyline in the TV episodes). I'm trying to keep the sentimentality to a minimum while retaining the essential feel-good flavour of life in Paradise which, for me, still centres largely around the wonderful dynamic between Richard and Camille.

 

                                                         

 Commissioner Selwyn Patterson of the Royal Sainte Marie Police Force sauntered into the Honore police station one morning, full of bonhomie and good humour. He had great news for the team, he said. Sainte Marie was soon to be graced with an exciting event. A major film studio was going to be shooting a cinematic picture on the island of Sainte Marie and, in particular, the town of Honore was to be singled out for special attention.

_Oh, just think of the benefits to Sainte Marie!_  All the people involved in the production would be staying in the island's hotels, dining in the cafes, bars and restaurants, spending in the local shops and markets, partaking of all the lovely touristic delights the island had to offer and - best of all - imagine the prestige of having recognisable actors and actresses starring on their island! This even beat the 400 year old legend of pirate Francois LeClerc and his (supposed) buried treasure. And the potential long term benefits were even better; tourism could be up for _years_ , and the economy safe for the distant future.

There was only one possible downside ("oh no, wait for it," thought the collective team of Detective Inspector Richard Poole, Detective Sergeant Camille Bordey, Sergeant Fidel Best and Ordinary Police Officer Dwayne Myers). There would need to be an increased police presence to cope with the likely influx of tourist fans and, more specifically, the film's two main stars, Adam Kerry and Tania Wells, might require a certain amount of "escorting" when away from the protective cover of the production unit.

The increased police presence would not be that much of a problem as extra officers could be temporarily drafted in from Guadeloupe in a reciprocal arrangement made some years before and, at any rate, it was not anticipated that there would be much trouble. The protagonists were (still) only relatively minor stars, nothing like as famous as some of the Hollywood superstars of yesteryear who were regularly mobbed wherever they went.

Richard Poole groaned and put his head in his hands the way he frequently did when he was either embarrassed, exasperated or just plain dreading something. On this occasion it was clearly the latter.

"Dear God, the circus is coming to town. I thought this was supposed to be a normal place (well, apart from the heat, the sand and the bugs); why is someone allowing it to be turned into a glorified amusement park?! And why are they dragging _us_ into it all? Surely they can bring their own bloody security with them?!"

Camille, Dwayne and Fidel braced themselves for another Richard Poole rant, but fortunately it was actually too hot for even Richard to carry on for very long. And if the truth be told,  _they_ were secretly rather excited at the prospect of some outside glamour coming to their island. Quite apart from putting it on the map for those who hadn't yet heard of Sainte Marie, it was well known that Tania Wells was one of the prettiest up and coming actresses in films at the time and Adam Kerry was, in Camille's opinion, positively the last word in gorgeous.

Richard, naturally, had not heard of either of them in spite of their having recently started to become familiar to the movie-going public, but then for a man who had never heard of Beyoncé either, that was hardly surprising. Anyway, given his track record for goggle-eyed soppiness with certain types of women, eg Megan Talbot, Liz Curtis ( _she of the skimpy yellow bikini_ ) and TV presenter Fiona Bruce, it wouldn't be long before Richard was drooling (figuratively speaking) all over the lovely Tania, at least once he'd stopped ogling her.

Camille felt a slight stab of irritation at the thought of Richard fancying another woman. Granted, it wasn't as if they were in an actual relationship themselves, but there were very definite undercurrents of attraction, and the unspoken assumption in many peoples' minds was that it was only a matter of time before the emotional and sexual chemistry between them finally erupted.

But, what's sauce for the goose is indeed sauce for the gander (and not the duck, as Camille had once mistakenly said!), and Adam Kerry was himself no slouch in the good looks department. In fact, he was everything Richard Poole was not. Tall, blond and beautifully tanned, with an air of modest confidence peeking out from his sunny and slightly cheeky smile. At the moment he was yet to make a big mark in mainstream cinema, but if this latest film proved to be a hit at the box office, both he and Tania could well find themselves catapulted into the stratosphere.

"Ooh look, there they are!" A small group of admirers began to form on Honore's main street (whatever that meant in a town as small as Honore) as they watched the stars and the supporting cast of the soon-to be-shot new film going 'walkabout' in the town. It was organised as a sort of goodwill gesture for the islanders and townsfolk to thank them for hosting the small army of people all there to make the movie, and to placate them in advance in case of disruption or inconvenience to their daily lives.

"Isn't he handsome/isn't she lovely?" were all the kinds of expressions from the swooning fans. Richard thought it a good thing that Adam Kerry and Tania Wells were only fairly minor celebrities as he most definitely would  _not_ have been willing to tolerate the kinds of frenzied crowds that accompanied the likes of Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, for example, back in the days.

Richard's team had been seconded to escort the leading actors throughout much of their time away from the set, something that the Commissioner thought would be great PR for Sainte Marie, but with which Richard did not concur. 

"I bet she's an empty headed diva, and he's probably a moron with a six pack", he'd thought very uncharitably and not a little judgmentally. Camille was still young and fun loving enough to see this as a once in a lifetime bit of local fun. Admittedly, it wasn't exactly akin to patrolling the mean streets of New York, but as there was next to nothing else going down at the time, what was wrong with a bit of harmless glamour and glitz? After all, she was a girl who'd been brought up in a culture of festivals and celebrations.

In point of fact, Tania Wells was British, 26 years old, and very pretty, with long brown hair and big blue eyes that tended to fix adoringly on any current object of interest. Adam Kerry was a 28 year old Canadian whose features were almost too perfect to be true; blond hair, sea green eyes, a chiselled nose and symmetrical jawline. He was an appealing combination of manly and sensitive in equal measure.

As they continued down their route towards the beach, smiling and exuding minor Hollywood-style charm, Tania lost her footing and slipped and Richard caught her. The predictable happened.

"Oh, thank you so much, Inspector Poole, I do seem to be rather clumsy today". Tania smiled sweetly at him and then looked down demurely; in fairness to her, she wasn't so much actively flirting with him as trying to cover her embarrassment, but Richard, who had a weakness for damsels in distress (particularly English rose types), found it irresistible.

"Not to worry, Miss Wells; these streets are dreadfully uneven in places. One does often wish the Honore budget would stretch to mending the potholes in the roads."

"Oh, please call me Tania. And may I call you Richard?"

"I...I'd be flattered, of course, Miss Wells.....I...I mean Tania".

Camille rolled her eyes at this exchange, and her gesture was caught by Adam Kerry who smiled at her in a friendly and conspiratorial manner.

"It really is very good of you to put up with us. I'm sure you have a hundred more important things to do," he said, falling into step with her.

"That's okay, don't worry. It's not every day that we have such excitement on Sainte Marie; there's a wonderful carnival atmosphere beginning to build up. I grew up here so I love all that," Camille answered with equanimity.

"You sound French, if you don't mind my being a bit personal. I gather that about 30% of the population on the island are of French descent?" Adam seemed to be taking a genuine interest in Camille, and sounded considerably more intelligent than she might have expected from a young man who looked like a matinee idol.

"Yes," she replied, "my mother is French and my father is Caribbean." She tilted her head ever so slightly to one side as if to ask why he would care to know.

"I'm interested partly because I'm one quarter French Canadian." He was too gentlemanly to tell Camille that the other part of the reason was that he had taken a bit of a shine to her. "My maternal grandmother was from Montreal and we used to spend time with her when I was a child."

Camille was thrilled. "Alors, vous devez parler bien couramment le francais, n'est-ce-pas? C'est bien, ca!" [So you must speak French pretty fluently then? That's great!]

"Pas tout a fait, je regrette," [not quite, I'm afraid] he chuckled. "My grandmother of course hoped I'd grow up bilingual," he explained, reverting back to the more comfortable (for him) English, "but I'm afraid I was rather lazy and didn't bother keeping it up since all of my friends were English speaking. Unfortunately, my gran died when I was only about 11, so I heard French spoken even less after that, except as a second language at school. We didn't speak it at home much at all as my dad wasn't keen on the whole French thing."  _Now_ _w_ _ho does that remind me of?_ thought Camille.

 "I think I've heard your boss refer to you as Camille? Is it okay to call you that?"

"Of course," she smiled.

"Thanks. I'm Adam." His grin was dazzling.

"Yes, I gathered that," she replied rather drily. "Quite half the island now knows who you are, even before your film here has been made. You know, word gets out and they all rush out to see if they can get hold of a DVD of your other work."

"Oh dear, some of the stuff I've done has not exactly been Shakespeare. I'm really hoping this picture gets off the ground. It's a story of forbidden love, but it's supposed to be a pretty serious one, with a tragic ending too - though I shouldn't have given that away now, should I?" he groaned, shaking his head.

"Don't worry, your secret is safe with me," promised Camille, with a light hearted laugh.

There was something about this young man that Camille found unexpectedly disarming. He seemed so un movie star-ish, or at least the way she assumed a star of the silver screen would be. Although he had the classical beauty of a Greek god, she could as yet detect no arrogance or conceit in him. Quite the opposite; Adam Kerry, film star in the making, was modest and charming. His interest in her was sincere; his conversation an expression of an open and friendly personality, not a cynical attempt to chat her up.

As the pair carried on their animated and breezy conversation, punctuated by giggles and phrases such as, "really?" and "you're kidding!", they failed to notice that they had also caught the attention of Richard Poole. Richard was not faring so well with his ingénue. After an initial bit of simpering and cooing from Tania Wells, she had then proceeded to ignore him and flirt with one of the cast instead, a guy who looked like he would be much more fun. Richard decided his first assessment of showbusiness types was right; most of them were vacuous and shallow, and Miss Wells could have been their poster girl.

Watching the easy, unforced nature of Camille and Adam's interactions, Richard felt a pang of sadness and jealousy. He quashed the latter emotion as he couldn't possibly admit to himself that he was (unconsciously) in love with Camille, but he was able to accept privately that he envied other men their confidence and ability to talk to women in a relaxed and natural way, and even to ask them out without being turned down. If he had not had feelings for Camille above and beyond the platonic, he would actually have admired the younger man.

As the group approached the beach, Adam and Tania and their co-stars were reunited with the other members of the production company. The Honore police escort would not be needed again for the next few days as shooting was to take place surrounded by the whole cast and crew and a few 'minders', and there was safety in numbers.

Just before leaving to join the others, Adam turned to Camille and said somewhat shyly, "It was really nice meeting you, Camille. I hope you don't mind my asking, but I was wondering if you would consider going for a drink - or perhaps dinner - sometime, assuming I can slip away?"

Camille's mind was trying to think in double time. On the one hand, she was very flattered that a handsome young (almost) film star was asking her out - and she genuinely liked him; on the other hand, there was the Richard Poole dilemma.

If she were to go out for even just a drink with Adam, how would that be interpreted? And if it was dinner, would there be any expectations? And if so, of what, precisely? A one night stand? A fling? A relationship? None of the above?

And what would Richard think? Might it even stir him to jealousy and give him a metaphorical kick up the backside? Would it have the opposite effect and disgust him - or discourage him?

While Camille pondered these myriad possibilities, the absurdity occurred to her that rather than asking herself if she actually _wanted_ to meet up for a drink or dinner with Adam and just take things as they come, she was instead trying to work out which of the above scenarios would be most likely to make Richard want her. She smiled rather ruefully at the irony of it, but she missed the bigger irony: she didn't have to do - or refrain from doing - anything to make Richard want her. He already did, and because it was driving him crazy, he kept doing his best to suppress it.

Nevertheless, Camille sensibly decided that her life was her own and, Richard or no Richard, there was no reason in the circumstances why she shouldn't spend a pleasant evening with Adam and enjoy it for what it was. She was grown up enough to look after herself. 

So, with all the grace and charm she possessed, Camille smiled very sweetly at him and replied, "Yes, I'd like that. Thank you very much."

"Great," came the response. "I'll call you soon." And with that, Adam Kerry smiled and turned to walk back towards his colleagues.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

 

                                                             

Two days later a young blond man wearing casual clothes and sunglasses walked into the Honore police station. Dwayne looked up from his desk and did a double take as he recognised Adam Kerry as one of the actors they had 'escorted' through the streets a couple of days previously.

"Hello again, Mr Kerry," said Dwayne with a slightly knowing smile, "what can we do for you?" Dwayne had not missed the friendly exchange between Adam and Camille and, what's more, he knew that Richard had not missed it either. Although he liked and respected his boss, 'the Chief', Dwayne nevertheless couldn't help feeling that an interesting situation could develop which would be quite amusing to witness (provided nobody actually got hurt, of course).

"Oh hi, I was just wondering if Camille was around?" answered Adam.

As if on cue, Richard Poole stepped from behind his desk, eyed up the handsome - and much younger - man, and said, "I'm afraid she's not here at the moment. Can I help you with anything?" This was obviously an absurd question since Adam Kerry was clearly not there on police business, but Richard wanted to make his presence felt. He didn't trust Adam, but would never have admitted to himself that it was really only his jealousy talking.

For all he kept holding Camille at arms' length because of his own insecurities, Richard felt distinctly bothered by this first real possible threat to his place in her life. Her blind dates had never actually been likely to take her away since her mother, Catherine, didn't quite understand what - or who - it was that her daughter really wanted, and only managed to set Camille up with men who were of no interest to her whatsoever.

Adam, who was completely unaware of the complicated dynamic between Camille and Richard, simply took the latter's question at face value.

"Oh okay, could I leave a message for her then, please? This is my card with my contact details on it; it says where I'm staying and also has my phone number on it."

"This is a police station, sir, not a social club," snapped Richard. Then, spotting Dwayne and Fidel's raised eyebrows and expressions of surprise, reluctantly backed down. "Very well, just leave your card with the officer there," as he pointed to Dwayne. He then turned away abruptly and marched back to his desk and shuffled some papers, as if to pretend he was extremely busy.

Adam got the hint and, thanking them all, left with a polite nod and smile.

The following afternoon Camille was in her apartment above La Kaz trying on just about every outfit in her wardrobe. She was going out for dinner with Adam Kerry in a few hours' time and she couldn't decide what to wear. Adam had been so sweet when she'd rather tentatively rung him on the number on the card he'd left for her at the station. Richard had pretended not to see her read it, but Fidel and Dwayne had caught him watching her in what he'd vainly hoped was a covert manner.

So, she was at last going on a proper date, and one that had not been set up by her mother. And with a bona fide (although admittedly still minor) film star! She wouldn't wear the special red dress she'd worn on the night of the Erzulie Festival when Richard had called her stunning and she had thought he was to be her blind date. Nor would she wear the pretty orange one she had so carefully chosen the day he had returned from his short visit to London to hand Vicky Woodward over to SOCA. So she settled eventually on an attractive blue dress, and put her hair up; the effect was very classy and brought to mind the phrase 'understated elegance'.

At 7:45pm a chauffeur driven car pulled up outside La Kaz and Camille was whisked off in style to the Paradise Bay Hotel for her date with Adam. He met her at the entrance with a warm handshake ( _very gentlemanly, thought Camille_ ) and a dazzling smile.

"I'm so sorry I wasn't able to pick you up in person. I really had been hoping to, but they made me stay for a script meeting and it went on for longer than expected. I hope Philip was an acceptable substitute," Adam apologised. Philip was the driver provided by the studio whom Adam had requested to collect Camille, regrettably without him.

Camille was amused. _Well, he was perfectly courteous and a good driver, but I'd hardly say he was much of a stand-in for_   _you._

"Don't worry, it was fine," she reassured him.

"I'm glad, thanks. Now, I think our table will be ready in about 10 minutes, so would you like a cocktail in the bar first?"

Camille was delighted and ordered an exotic blue concoction with lots of fruit and straws and umbrellas, much to Adam's amusement. He just had a gin and tonic. Shortly afterwards they were shown to their table in a quiet corner of the sumptuously furnished dining room, away from most of the other diners.

"Don't you get recognised a lot?" asked Camille. She was surprised that Adam had not been stared at or approached at any time when she was with him.

"I guess it sort of depends where I am," he replied with a bit of a shrug. "I'm really not that well known, anyway, and I try to sort of keep my head down when I'm out and about, so mostly I'm left alone."

Camille realised that he was probably right; after all, if the Commissioner hadn't put out the word about a 'famous studio' with its 'famous stars' coming to Sainte Marie, it was more than likely that no one there would otherwise have recognised either Adam or Tania. They weren't superstars yet.

"Sounds like the best of both worlds," she said, smiling.

"Yes, that's a good way of putting it."

This seemed to set the tone for the rest of the evening - light and chatty, with little snippets of information about themselves that began to gradually emerge through their conversations. It was a lovely evening and Camille was charmed by this sweet, intelligent and somewhat old-fashioned young actor. _Why would someone like Adam Kerry be asking someone like me out? I have no links to the entertainment world, and I'm even a bit older than him_ _?_ she couldn't help wondering.

As if he could read her mind, Adam said, "I can't tell you how nice it is to be spending time with a 'normal' person, someone who isn't preoccupied with lighting, scripts, costumes or their lines. This industry can be a little pretentious."

"Well, your life sounds pretty exciting from where I am sitting. Most people would love to be in your shoes, even with the negative aspects. It looks glamorous from the outside, even if it isn't really," she protested slightly.

"Oh, I'm not complaining, I just meant that most of it's not reality. It's too easy to forget that and to get so caught up in the fantasy and image that you lose your sense of self. Actors are particularly susceptible, but even the people who work behind the scenes can sometimes get swept up in the world of make believe to the point where they become a little.....please excuse the expression....arty-farty."

Camille laughed; she was pleasantly surprised at how relaxing and natural it felt being in the company of someone so attractive and yet so down to earth as this 'minor celebrity'. The detective in her was still looking for signs of deception or deviousness in Adam, but she had to admit to herself that if it was there, it was remarkably well hidden.

 _Oh stop trying to analyse everything and just enjoy the evening,_ she told herself.

 

It was 10:30pm and Richard Poole was trying to finish his crossword puzzle. He wasn't having much luck because he kept reading the clues over and over again but not retaining what they said. After more than an hour of struggling with the kind of crossword he would normally polish off in about 10 minutes, he tossed the paper to one side and grunted with disgust. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Harry watching him; 'just like my mother looks at me', he said to himself again.

"Well, what would you do in my situation?"

Harry tilted his head in his usual fashion, and Richard sighed. "I think I could do with some fresh air," he announced.

The lizard cocked his head more sharply this time and stared hard at Richard.

"Yes I know, but I can't breathe in here. And you can stop looking at me like that."

And with that remark, Richard straightened his jacket and tie and stepped out into the night air.

 

Camille and Adam had finished their meal and coffee and were heading out of the restaurant and into the hotel lobby. Adam excused himself for a minute to pay a call, leaving Camille waiting contentedly by the Reception desk near the hotel entrance. As she stared idly out of the huge windows, she caught sight of something - or rather someone - familiar. The figure hurriedly turned away but it was too late. She'd recognised the unmistakeable form of Richard Poole.

"Sir?" she called out. "Richard?" she repeated, this time using the more familiar term.

There was no way now that Richard could pretend he wasn't there, so he decided he'd just have to try and bluff it out.

"Oh, hello Camille." He raised his eyebrows and gave a little half smile.

"Is anything wrong? Has something happened?" she asked.

It took him a moment to realise what Camille meant. Senior detectives are never 100% off duty, and if there has been a major incident, they may well be called to the scene even if they're otherwise clocked off.

"Oh no, everything's fine." There had clearly been no murder or mayhem to bring him to the hotel.

"Then...what are you doing here?" Camille asked.

"Um.... I just thought I'd take a little walk, you know, a little fresh air and..... stretch my legs...." He was beginning to gabble and Camille was getting more than a little suspicious.

"Are you checking up on me??", she demanded to know.

Richard feigned indignation. "No, of course not. I told you, I felt like going for a walk. Anything wrong with that?" he answered defensively.

"At this time of night? In your dark woollen suit?" Her eyes narrowed ominously and Richard could tell that Camille was getting cross. "Were you following me just because I've got a date?"

"Oh, don't be so childish, Camille - "

Just then Adam appeared and stopped in his tracks. He looked at Richard and then at Camille, and then back again at Richard.

"Oh hello," he said politely. "Is anything wrong?" He'd jumped to the same conclusion as Camille had a few moments earlier, the natural conclusion to jump to if you were a normal person. It was uncertain whether Richard Poole qualified for that category, though.

"No," said Camille abruptly. "The Inspector was just out for a walk and ended up here and he happened to spot me," Camille said with a hint of sarcasm which Adam didn't quite catch. He wasn't familiar with the nature of Richard and Camille's relationship, so he didn't read anything into her comment.

"Adam!! Sorry, but can you come quickly?? There's a major problem with Tania, and she says she won't speak to anyone but you!" A very harassed looking man rushed over to Adam and apologised for interrupting. Adam introduced him to the others as Mark, one of the assistant directors.

Mark nodded to Richard and Camille in brief acknowledgement and then continued speaking to Adam in a low voice.

"Sorry mate, but she's threatening to walk out of the picture. She says she's completely unhappy with the script changes and that since you're affected by it too, she wants to talk to you."

" _Now?!'_ Adam was incredulous. "I am a bit busy here, can't it wait?"

It was evident that this was what the 'luvvies'  [a predominantly British term for film and theatre people, especially gushing ones]  would call a dire emergency.

Adam turned to Camille with a pained look on his face, and spoke to her as if Richard were not even present.

"I am _so_ sorry about this, Camille. Please let me make it up to you as soon as possible? Perhaps another evening this week, you choose the venue?" He looked stricken with guilt and was obviously worried this might spoil his chances to see Camille again.

Camille was philosophical about it. She understood it wasn't Adam's fault, but she was also getting a rapid insight into the world of the prima donna and the artistic temperament.

"That's okay, you couldn't help it. If you want to try again, just give me a call when you're free."

"Thanks for being such a good sport. I'm afraid I really do have to go now. Will you be alright for getting home?" Adam was feeling very concerned and stressed about the situation.

"Oh yes, that's not a problem, honestly. l'll be fine," Camille insisted.

He looked relieved, then leaned hesitantly towards Camille, who let him kiss her on both cheeks.

With that, he and Mark, the assistant director, rushed off in the direction of the hotel lift.

Richard and Camille stood staring after them and then Camille turned to look at Richard. He was doing his best not to look pleased at this latest turn of events, but he was also a bit nervous in case Camille was in a bad mood as a result - and with him for his bizarre behaviour. His looking pleased would definitely not help, so he forced himself to wipe the would-be smile off his face.

Camille was not taken in. "I expect you're satisfied now?" she demanded, eyebrows raised in challenge. She had to admit, though, that however inappropriate Richard's actions were, it wasn't his fault that Adam got called away so suddenly. That would have happened anyway; an occupational hazard, given the nature of his profession.

Richard's jaw dropped. "Come on Camille, that's not fair. I didn't do anything."

"You stalk me on my first real date in years, and you say you haven't done anything? What were you thinking of?! That I was in danger or something? I can look after myself, you know!"

"Ok sorry, I just felt... restless... and needed to get out. At least I didn't turn up in my pyjamas," he added, making a feeble attempt at humour.

Camille just shook her head and said, "Thank God for small mercies. Well, what now? Do I have to call a taxi or are you going to walk me home then?"

"I'll walk you home."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

A little smile formed in the corners of each of their respective mouths and their eyes met in silent understanding as their unspoken bond of friendship (and more) overcame Camille's annoyance, and Richard had a chance to have Camille to himself, even if only for a little while longer.

 

 


	3. Chapter 3

 

 

"I really am sorry your date ended the way it did," Richard said with sincerity as he and Camille left the Paradise Bay Hotel and walked back towards La Kaz. Of course he was glad that Camille had not spent any more time with her date, Adam Kerry, but he didn't actually want her to be unhappy.

"Yeah, well that seems to be the story of my life, at least the dating history," she answered with a shrug. "How did you know where I'd be? And please don't say it was a coincidence because I won't buy that for a minute."

Richard had the good grace to know when he was defeated. "I heard Dwayne and Fidel talking about it. Sorry. Are you _very_ disappointed?" he pressed.

"I'll get over it. Anyway, you heard him say he wanted to make it up to me and take me out again; I guess I'll just have to be patient."

"So...would you want to go through it again? I mean, what if you got stood up again?"

"What are you talking about? I wasn't stood up! He just had to leave suddenly because of an unexpected emergency. Why are you trying to make it seem worse than it was? Are you trying to make me feel bad or something?" she demanded.

Richard wisely decided this was not a good line of questioning to pursue, so he changed the subject.

"You look very nice this evening. Is that a new dress?" He was attempting some small talk, hoping that compliments might put him back in her good books.

Camille just looked at him as if he were an idiot. "Since when are you interested in my wardrobe?" she snapped, but then instantly regretted it when she recalled the care with which she had deliberately not chosen either of the dresses in which Richard had seemed to think she looked particularly good. Perhaps she was being a little unfair; maybe he really was just trying to be nice.

"Sorry," she added quietly.

Richard simply shook his head and smiled, as if to say it didn't matter.

Before long they reached Catherine's bar and Richard was about to say goodnight.

Somewhat impulsively, Camille took charge and said, "I'll give you a lift back to the bungalow. It's a bit of a walk and you've already been doing a lot of that this evening."

Richard looked perplexed and was about to say something when Camille did her famous snap-point thing, and he found himself obediently getting into the Defender which had been parked outside La Kaz so that she could collect him for work in the mornings.

They rode in relative silence until the Land Rover pulled up by the entrance to the little beach house.

"Well, this is me," said Richard in an attempt at cheerfulness. "Thank you for the lift," and smiled at the strange way things had worked out on what was supposed to have been Camille's date with another man.

"Aren't you going to invite me in?" Camille asked unexpectedly. Her voice held a faint challenge in it and if he could have seen her eyes, he would have perceived a glow of desire in them.

"Um....yes....of course.....please...do...come in," he stuttered. "Would you like a drink - I've got tea, coffee, water and some fruit juice, I think."

She followed him into the house and stood facing him, her eyes fixed on his.

"Camille?"

Richard looked confused and half smiled at her. He was slightly dreading the possibility that he might be in for a serious telling off for having behaved like a complete twit earlier, but he noticed something in her expression that made him suspect otherwise. _Could it be?! Is she silently propositioning me?_ he marvelled. Having next to no experience with the opposite sex, this prospect filled him with both delight and terror, and he wasn't even absolutely certain he'd read her correctly.

Happily for Richard, he didn't have to wonder for too long. Camille moved in closer to him, looked intently into his eyes and reached up to plant a kiss on his lips. The effect was explosive; he instinctively put his arms around her as she wrapped hers around his neck, and the whole room spun for him. Their kissing became deeper and more passionate until they could no longer stand and they retired to his bed. Arms and hands and mouths were everywhere as clothes were frantically pulled off and their breathing grew louder and more laboured, and words of affection and encouragement were uttered. The dam that had been holding back both of their long suppressed desires - emotional as well as physical - finally burst in spectacular fashion as they spent hours of passion and intimacy that neither had known before in such measure (well, Richard not at all, if the truth be told).

Much later, Richard awoke from his sated sleep and automatically put his hand out to reach for Camille. She was gone, and on his bedside table was a little note saying she'd gone home to get changed and ready for work and would collect him later as per usual to drive him to the station. He frowned a little in consternation. Why had she left so soon afterwards, and in the middle of the night? Was she already regretting what they had done? Did she blame him because it wouldn't have happened if he hadn't gormlessly turned up at the hotel where she had been on a date? But she had definitely instigated it; he knew he had not taken advantage of her.

A more alarming idea entered his head: _I_ _f it hadn't been with me, would it have been with Adam tonight? Was she getting back at me by treating me as some sort of consolation prize? Or was her undoubted ardour driven more by anger than by desire - or love?_

He shuddered at that last word because it frightened him the most. He associated love with disappointment and hurt, so he did his best to avoid it, but that was virtually impossible with the woman who had got under his skin like no one else in his life. He checked to make sure his alarm clock was set and then rolled over and went back to sleep for a couple of hours longer.

 

Camille lay in her bath cherishing the memory of the night before but also pondering what would happen now. She'd just thrown herself at her boss, which might not normally have been the most sensible course of action but, given the incredible enthusiasm with which he had responded, she didn't imagine she'd be in any trouble for it. She knew that it was an odd thing to have done, just sneaking out like that without a word, but after the initial passion had been spent and Richard had drifted off to sleep, she'd felt suddenly puzzled and self-conscious. She didn't know what it all meant, or whether her new friend, Adam Kerry, would have any place in her life either. She was confused and knew she just needed some space. These times in her bath usually helped her to relax and soak away any worries.

 

Both Camille and Richard had wondered whether it would be awkward and/or embarrassing when they went back to work at the Honore police station, so they had both independently decided to act in public as if nothing had happened. When Camille arrived at the beach house to collect Richard, they were both very cordial but there was an atmosphere of shyness and reserve, maybe even a little tension on Camille's part.

"Good morning," said Richard first, "Everything alright?"

"Yes, fine thanks. And you?" Camille responded.

"Yes, fine." He had to say something. "I was just a little...uh...concerned when I woke up and found you weren't there. I.... didn't do anything to upset you, did I?"

"Oh no, sorry. I just felt a little....disorientated, and I also thought of how embarrassing it would be if my mother saw me coming home in the daylight wearing last night's clothes. I didn't want to disturb you, so that's why I crept out without waking you. Sorry." She knew she hadn't told him everything, but that would have to suffice for now.

Richard felt relieved - sort of. He knew that what had passed between them had not only been extraordinarily passionate, but also very intimate. They may have expressed themselves in physical terms, but the emotions they felt were right behind the acts, so he was still a little unsettled by Camille's apparent wish to put some distance between them already.

"That's okay, thanks for letting me know," was his bland response.

When they arrived at the station they were successful in hiding any hint of what had transpired between them, partly helped by Camille's slightly distracted and detached demeanor. Richard hoped she was just 'playing the part' for Dwayne and Fidel's benefit, but he wasn't sure. He had a nagging suspicion there was more to it than good acting.

He was right to be concerned. At about 5 o'clock that afternoon, her mobile rang and she stepped outside onto the station balcony to take the call. Richard could hear her saying to the caller, "That's okay, it wasn't your fault. Yes, I got home fine..." Richard blanched at hearing her speak like that to what was obviously Adam on the other end of the line.

 _Fine?!? Only the most momentous night of his whole life!_ But it got worse. Much worse. Because in the next breath he heard her say, "Oh, that would be lovely. What time? Okay, I'll see you there. Bye."

When she walked back in, she saw Fidel looking concerned and raised her eyebrows in question. He nodded in the direction of Richard, who was looking shell-shocked. Nearly all the colour had drained from his face and he looked as if he might faint.

Camille hurried over to him. "Sir? Are you okay, Sir?" she asked, careful to use the formal term of address in the station.

Richard gave her a look that said it all and she realised he had overheard everything. She was actually agreeing to another date with Adam, not even 24 hours after they had given themselves completely to each other, or so he had believed. It reminded him of the old saying, 'boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl', only the other way round. And he didn't think it was supposed to happen that fast, anyway. 

Pulling himself together in front of the others, he gathered together his paperwork for the day, made some excuse and got a taxi home. On entering his house, he dumped his briefcase on the floor, took a beer out of the fridge and drafted a very brief letter of resignation to Commissioner Patterson. Then he slumped down in his chair, put his head in his hands, and - for probably the first time in decades - wept.

  

 


	4. Chapter 4

 

 

Richard's mobile phone rang. The call was from Camille, which lifted his heart a little, but he didn't trust his voice not to give him away so he didn't answer it. It rang again and the same thing happened. A few minutes later he decided he might as well check his voicemail and, sure enough, she had left him a voice message.

_Richard, please pick up! I've been so worried about you since you left the station; you looked like you were going to pass out. Did you get home alright? Please let's talk, let me try and explain things. I'm not dating Adam, he just invited me to the movie set: he thought I might enjoy watching them filming and all that. If you don't ring back I'm coming over to the house. No, never mind, I'm coming over anyway; please be there and let me in!!_

Richard sighed and shook his head. He should have been relieved and happy, but his mind and heart had been on such a roller-coaster these last two days that he only felt drained and empty. He had a painful, hollow feeling in the pit of his stomach and he was exhausted from lack of sleep and now from stress.

The events of the previous days would have been difficult - or at least confusing - for many people, but Richard Poole, with his deep seated insecurities and even more deeply repressed emotions, took it harder than the average person. Because he had no reserves to fall back on, no inner self confidence, no support network of close friends or family either, he felt he'd lost almost everything. Yes, there was work, which he did thrive on, but that release of pent up feelings the night before had left him acutely vulnerable and meant he would have to re-build his defences; and he didn't know if he'd have the inner strength for that now. At least not here in Sainte Marie where there would always be constant reminders.

Being a 'glass half empty' rather than a 'glass half full' sort of person, he couldn't even take that much comfort from Camille's assertion that she was not dating Adam. All he'd heard was that she was going to be seeing him again - a handsome, young, probably soon-to-be rich and famous film star, not a boring middle-aged policeman - and everything else was a blur.

Sitting there with his sixth bottle of beer nearly finished, he vaguely heard the old Defender screech to a halt outside the shack. Camille practically flew out the door and rushed to his veranda. He hadn't bothered to shut the door, and at any rate he preferred to feel the air circulate as it gave him a little (though not much) relief from the Caribbean heat, so Camille just walked right in.

Richard was still slumped in his chair and simply looked up wearily at her.

"What do you want with me?" he slurred.

"Oh my God, how many have you had, Richard?" She had never seen him like this and never expected to.

"Not many. Why? Does it matter?"

"Why are you talking like you think I don't care about you?! Is all this because I agreed to meet up with Adam again? He just invited me to go and watch the shoot, that's all. After everything we've shared, how could you think I would spend the most amazing night with you, and then go rushing off to date him?"

"I should have thought that was obvious; and it's not as if you weren't trying to rearrange your last one." Richard answered somewhat bitterly. The drink had loosened his tongue and his usual habit of clamming up was not in evidence now.

Camille was mortified. "That was _before_ we made love and I spent the night here with _you!_  Is that what you really think of me?!" She was close to tears herself.

"It's what I think of him," he answered dully. "He's young, good-looking, going places. I don't imagine many women would be able to resist that, and since he seems so keen on you, I suppose it's only natural you would rather be with him. After all, your date was with him, not with me, as you made very clear at the time."

"Well, I don't recall you ever asking me out on a date!!"

"Would you have gone out with me if I had?" His voice was cynical and resigned.

"Yes!!"

"I see."

"What do you see?! Richard Poole, you're impossible!" _Where had he heard that before?_

"Why didn't you say so at the station?" He was referring back to the phone call.

"Say what? That you're impossible?" Camille had lost track of the conversation.

"That you'd been invited to the set to watch the filming."

"You never gave me the chance. As soon as I came back in, Fidel had this strange look on his face and nodded towards you. You looked like you'd just seen a ghost."

"Perhaps I had," he replied enigmatically.

The sudden experience of (imagined) rejection by Camille had taken him straight back to his youth when he'd had few friends, and especially to his university days when he had loved someone and been turned down in no uncertain terms. For an already emotionally damaged man, it had been a potentially lifelong blow to his confidence. This later - and greater - devastation would have finished him off.

Camille tilted her head and raised her eyebrows at Richard, willing him to explain.

"Oh you know," he said, "it's just stuff from the past. I thought it was deja vu on a bigger scale. I'd rather not talk about it any more, if you don't mind. I'm so tired now."

Her eyes filled up as she saw how close he'd come to breaking point. This dear, brilliant man who, in spite of his pedantic, fussy and uptight ways, was also kind, generous and caring underneath. Worst of all, her own ambivalence about love, and her curiosity about Adam and his very different world, had inadvertently caused all this heartache to Richard. And all those years with just a few early romances that led nowhere, followed by a whole host of pointless blind dates enforced by her mother, had not been good for Camille's confidence in affairs of the heart either.

"Of course, you need to get some rest," she said in her gentlest nurturing tone. "Shall I make a cup of tea and you can get ready for bed?"

"Yes, please." He was just about able to stagger to the bed, and then fell asleep right on top of it without drinking his tea or getting out of his day clothes (though fortunately he'd taken his jacket off earlier).

Camille sent a quick text to Fidel to let him know their boss was alright, just in need of rest. Fidel and Dwayne had been aware of the sparks between Richard and Camille, but had no inkling of the recent dramatic developments, so Fidel accepted her message at face value.

Then she took off her shoes and snuggled up next to Richard. His arm instinctively curled round her shoulder as she lay with one arm resting lightly on his chest. They slept together cuddled up like that for the rest of the evening and throughout most of the night.

Camille was the first to wake up. They had been so exhausted that they'd slept in a somewhat uncomfortable position together and she was feeling a bit achy. She looked at Richard who was still asleep, and tried to ease herself away from him and off the bed without disturbing him.

She went into his tiny kitchen and found some tea bags - no messing about with the teapot and loose tea leaves this morning - and popped one in a cup while the kettle was boiling. Richard was sure to have real milk in his fridge, so she was able to make him a cup of tea the way he liked it (almost).

After placing it on the little bedside table, she crept into the cosy en-suite shower room and ran the water. Slipping off her clothes, she got under the soothing warm stream and let it wash over her. About a minute later she heard Richard getting up and calling her name. She called back to him and he entered the little wash room. She felt a bit guilty about using his shower without asking, and more than a little self-conscious standing under the jet with nothing on. She quickly turned off the water and reached for one of his towels.

"Sorry," she said sheepishly, "I hope you don't mind. I would have asked you but I didn't want to disturb you. Is it okay?"

Richard, who couldn't help admiring her beautiful body, smiled and said, "Of course."

"I'm afraid I've borrowed a towel as well," she apologised again.

"That doesn't matter. Actually...yes it does, please take it off immediately, Sergeant Bordey!" He had that look in his eye and Camille shivered, but not from cold. Clearly a good night's sleep and a reassuring talk and cuddle with her had done wonders for his outlook.

"Inspector!" she responded playfully, "that leaves me at a bit of a disadvantage."

"Don't worry," he replied with a cheeky grin, "I'll even up the score," and at that he proceeded to take off his clothes and step into the shower with her, as Camille squealed with surprise and delight.

"Can you turn the water back on, please?" he asked her.

The combination of lather and water and two lovers reconciling after a painful misunderstanding was a heady mix and made for a pretty exciting start to the day for the pair.

But it was also important to talk about some of the issues they had not yet discussed while they had been too busy discovering each other in the throes of passion. So they made a _date_ for that evening when they would talk calmly and rationally about their future(s).

 

 


	5. Chapter 5

 

 

Andre's was a beautiful and elegant restaurant, set in a veritable garden of luscious tropical flowers, and perched high above one of Sainte Marie's most picturesque harbours. The food was not especially exotic or sophisticated, but people came for the breathtaking views and the lovely local flora.

Richard had been exceptionally lucky to have got a table at such short notice. There had been a last minute cancellation and the gods had smiled upon him. Thus, at 8:00pm on a balmy Caribbean evening, Inspector Richard Poole walked in with the most beautiful woman he had ever met on his arm.

Camille had had no hesitation in choosing the dress she would wear. That was a no-brainer; it was the gorgeous red dress with the organza tulle skirt that she had worn the night of the Erzulie festival when Richard had called her 'stunning', and she had briefly thought he was her blind date.

Richard, for his part, had been blown away. He had noticed that Camille was beautiful from the day he had met her - it was blindingly obvious - but that evening of the Erzulie festival was the first time it had registered with him in a personal way. Probably because he also became aware that she momentarily had assumed he was to be her date, and it had given them both a glimpse of new possibilities - and a missed opportunity too.

Nevertheless, that was all behind them now and they were about to discuss their future in the ethereal splendour that was Andre's restaurant. They were shown to a table on the terrace with, although not the very best view of the harbour, nonetheless a very nice view out to the sea beyond.

Camille felt very spoilt; Andre's was expensive, and the fact that Richard would take her to such a costly place seemed to enhance her confidence in his feelings for her and - she hoped - his own hopes for their future.

After ordering their food and wine, she thanked him for finding such a fabulous spot.

"Richard, you're an absolute genius for getting us into Andre's. Normally they're booked up for weeks in advance! Thank you so much, I just love it here."

Richard's chest swelled with manly pride that he'd been so successful in pleasing the woman he loved, albeit in such a small way.

"Well, I hoped you would like it here. I remember once overhearing a conversation between Dwayne and Fidel about the best restaurants to take a special lady to. Fidel was the one who mentioned Andre's, but Dwayne had said it wouldn't be so good for him even if he could afford it because it would send out the wrong signals to any of his girlfriends. Anyway, I just made a mental note of it."

"Ah, so you were thinking of asking a lady out were you, even back then?" Camille asked playfully.

"Well, a man never knows when he might need to impress a lady...." he replied in kind. "I mean, if things had turned out differently with Megan Talbot or perhaps the young woman in the yellow bikini in the rainforest......"

Camille scowled in mock fury and then laughed. "But both the beach and the jungle are pretty unhygienic, aren't they?" she teased.

"Oh God, yeah that's true," Richard shuddered. "Give me a nice clean bed any time."

"You'll have to wait till we get back, Inspector. But if you should feel a bit 'unhygienic' afterwards, there's a perfectly good shower at your house, so I'm led to believe...."

Richard blushed crimson at the memory of their lather filled antics that morning.

"Not now, Camille, please! Somebody might hear you."

Camille giggled and decided to have pity on the Englishman sitting opposite her who still had the tendency to get very flustered and embarrassed at the mention of certain activities or emotions. 

"Okay, sorry, I'll wait till later," she agreed.

Richard smiled in thanks and then blushed again at the thought of the fun they would have later if all went well.

"Um...." he changed the subject without making a very articulate start. "About our future...."

Camille felt a momentary blip of fear when she wondered if he was going to say he wasn't sure it would be such a good idea after all. _Perhaps I pushed him a bit too far by embarrassing him just now._

Outwardly, she remained calm and answered, "Yes, I was hoping we'd get a chance to talk about that this evening."

 _I hope she's not having second thoughts about being together,_ worried Richard.

Having stared possible defeat in the face when he thought he was losing Camille just a few days earlier, Richard decided to take the bull by both horns now. After all, it couldn't get any worse than that, could it?

"I think you know that I have strong feelings for you, Camille," he began.

When she raised her eyebrows and looked searchingly into his eyes, he took a deep breath and improved on his last statement. "Actually, to tell you the truth, I'm in love with you." He looked at her for reassurance and when he saw the way she was looking back at him, he continued. "I love you, Camille, and I think I would like to spend the rest of my life with you."

Camille reached for his hand and squeezed it. There were tears in her eyes when she replied, "I love you too, Richard. I want you more than I've ever wanted any other man. Do you think the rules of 'fraternisation' will be a problem, though?"

"Well, that's something I've been thinking about a lot. Technically, we actually work for different agencies; I am on secondment from the Metropolitan Police Force and you are employed by the Royal Sainte Marie Police Force. I know my status as Inspector officially outranks yours and makes me your boss at the station, but we may be able to request that, as we work for different agencies and both answer to the Commissioner, there might be a certain tolerance of our relationship provided we were discreet and didn't let it interfere in any way with our work."

"Hmm, the Commissioner was my boss independently when I was working undercover, too. He always seemed quite paternalistic towards me; perhaps that will be in our favour?"

"Let's hope so," said Richard sincerely. "I am prepared to do whatever it takes to make you happy, Camille, and to stay with you, even if it means re-thinking the job situation, but ideally it would be good if we could stay as we are at work."

Camille was about to agree with him when they both became aware of a familiar figure approaching their table. It was a very good-looking young blond man, and Richard tried hard not to glower at him.

"Adam, hi!" came the startled greeting from Camille.

"Hi," replied Adam Kerry with a bright and friendly smile. "How are you? I hope I'm not interrupting your meal."

 _Yes you are, actually,_ thought Richard a bit possessively.

"You remember Richard Poole, my boss and....friend?" went on Camille. She was careful to re-introduce and include Richard in order to minimize any possible feelings of jealousy on his part.

"Yes, hi, nice to see you again," answered Adam easily.

"Are you celebrating a special occasion?" asked Camille, as she could now see that Adam had come in with a party of some 12-14 people.

"Yes, it's our director's birthday today and he's treating us all to a meal out here. Actually, I suspect he'll probably put it on the expense account, but it's a nice place here and good food. It would be a shame to look a gift horse in the mouth now, wouldn't it?"

The honest policeman in Richard Poole - some would say the stickler for the rules - frowned inwardly at the expenses comment, but at the end of the day it wasn't anything to do with him and anyway, Adam had only said he suspected that was what the director would do, not that it was certain.

A moment later, Tania Wells also walked up and stood beside Adam.

"Oh, hi Tania," said Adam good-naturedly as he turned to look at her.

"Camille, Inspector, you remember Tania, who's acting with me in this picture?" Adam didn't like to use the word, 'co-star', as he thought that description sounded a bit big-headed.

Richard rose to greet Tania, shaking her hand and smiling very cordially. Camille remembered their last interaction when, in her opinion, Tania had flirted outrageously with Richard, and this had led to her, Camille, meeting Adam. What a funny old world, she thought idly.

Because Richard had courteously stood up to greet Tania, Camille automatically rose to her feet as well. The next thing she knew, there was the sound of Adam shouting, "Get down!", and then a gunshot as she was pushed to the floor. Then more gunfire, and a figure slumped and fell on top of her. There were sounds of screaming all over the restaurant, and then she could hear Richard frantically calling out her name and pulling her out from under the lifeless body of Adam Kerry.

A terrible and near hysterical skirmish broke out as Richard instinctively hurried, with several other brave customers, to try and tackle and, if possible, disarm the shooter. Unfortunately, the latter was too quick for them and, in the melee, simply turned the gun on himself and pulled the trigger.

Richard's first priority after that was to check that Camille was uninjured, then he rang for help. Some of the other diners had got their mobile phones out and called too, thereby ensuring that help was indeed on the way.

About 10 minutes later, Dwayne, Fidel, and more armed police back-up, plus the medical services, arrived. Tania Wells was stretchered off to hospital, but it was sadly too late for anyone to help Adam. As the medical team began to calm people down, and police were able to start gathering some eyewitness accounts, it transpired that the shots all seemed to have come from one lone gunman who killed Adam and injured Tania before taking his own life.

Camille was badly shaken and a bit bruised from when Adam had both pushed her to the ground and then fallen on top of her, but otherwise she was unhurt. She had been incredibly lucky, because it was soon discovered that the trajectory of at least one of the bullets was in a direct line to her. If Adam, out of the corner of his eye, had not seen the shooter approaching and had not pushed Camille to safety, she would almost certainly have been shot and also killed.

 

The preliminary inquest into the tragic events was held only a few days later. Eventually there would have to be a fuller investigation and detailed report into the whole horrific affair, but the bare facts were ascertained fairly quickly and basic information revealed.

It turned out that the gunman was one Jason Daniels, a 32 year old with a history of mental health problems, and a one time boyfriend of Tania Wells. He had been secretly following both her career and, it now emerged, her every move since she was 20 years old. They had dated briefly at the start of Tania's career but when she had moved on, Daniels had been unwilling to accept that it was over. He had come to Sainte Marie via another island in the Caribbean, where he had mixed with a bunch of criminals and acquired a firearm. His intention had been to force Tania to return to him or, failing that, to kill her.

Camille, when she had stood up to greet Tania, had somehow leant right into the line of fire as the shooter, Daniels, had taken aim at Tania. Adam must have spotted him very briefly and just instinctively reacted to protect Camille. Tania had been shot but not fatally, but Adam had died instantly. There was no indication that Adam had ever heard of Jason Daniels, as he and Tania had simply been colleagues but had not been close friends or confidantes.

 

Production closed down very abruptly after the tragedy, but it was decided to hold a memorial service for Adam, even though his body had already been flown back to his grieving family in Canada. Camille had written a condolence card to his family, for which she had received a warm and gracious reply, but nevertheless she really wanted to give thanks in Sainte Marie for his life and his heroism.

 

The church was packed at the memorial service. As the minister said his prayers of thanks and farewell to Adam Kerry, Richard Poole bowed his head in silent remembrance of - and in grateful thanks to - the young man he had regrettably misjudged, and to whom he owed the life of the woman he loved.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the slightly shocking ending - it ran away with me and became more dramatic (and tragic) than I had originally intended. Not, perhaps, quite the feel-good flavour of Paradise that I would normally have come to expect, but this end result jumped into my head as I was approaching the shooting scene and wouldn't let go.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an alternative ending to the one in Chapter 5. I am not totally happy with it, but it may be preferred to the previous one.

 

 

Andre's was a beautiful and elegant restaurant, set in a veritable garden of luscious tropical flowers, and perched high above one of Sainte Marie's most picturesque harbours. The food was not especially exotic or sophisticated, but people came for the breathtaking views and the lovely local flora.

Richard had been exceptionally lucky to have got a table at such short notice. There had been a last minute cancellation and the gods had smiled upon him. Thus, at 8:00pm on a balmy Caribbean evening, Inspector Richard Poole walked in with the most beautiful woman he had ever met on his arm.

Camille had had no hesitation in choosing the dress she would wear. That was a no-brainer; it was the gorgeous red dress with the organza tulle skirt that she had worn the night of the Erzulie festival when Richard had called her 'stunning', and she had briefly thought he was her blind date.

Richard, for his part, had been blown away. He had noticed that Camille was beautiful from the day he had met her - it was blindingly obvious - but that evening of the Erzulie festival was the first time it had registered with him in a personal way. Probably because he also became aware that she momentarily had assumed he was to be her date, and it had given them both a glimpse of new possibilities - and a missed opportunity too.

Nevertheless, that was all behind them now and they were about to discuss their future in the ethereal splendour that was Andre's restaurant. They were shown to a table on the terrace with, although not the very best view of the harbour, nonetheless a very nice view out to the sea beyond.

Camille felt very spoilt; Andre's was expensive, and the fact that Richard would take her to such a costly place seemed to enhance her confidence in his feelings for her and - she hoped - his own hopes for their future.

After ordering their food and wine, she thanked him for finding such a fabulous spot.

"Richard, you're an absolute genius for getting us into Andre's. Normally they're booked up for weeks in advance! Thank you so much, I just love it here."

Richard's chest swelled with manly pride that he'd been so successful in pleasing the woman he loved, albeit in such a small way.

"Well, I hoped you would like it here. I remember once overhearing a conversation between Dwayne and Fidel about the best restaurants to take a special lady to. Fidel was the one who mentioned Andre's, but Dwayne had said it wouldn't be so good for him even if he could afford it because it would send out the wrong signals to any of his girlfriends. Anyway, I just made a mental note of it."

"Ah, so you were thinking of asking a lady out were you, even back then?" Camille asked playfully.

"Well, a man never knows when he might need to impress a lady...." he replied in kind. "I mean, if things had turned out differently with Megan Talbot or perhaps the young woman in the yellow bikini in the rainforest......"

Camille scowled in mock fury and then laughed. "But both the beach and the jungle are pretty unhygienic, aren't they?" she teased.

"Oh God, yeah that's true," Richard shuddered. "Give me a nice clean bed any time."

"You'll have to wait till we get back, Inspector. But if you should feel a bit 'unhygienic' afterwards, there's a perfectly good shower at your house, so I'm led to believe...."

Richard blushed crimson at the memory of their lather filled antics that morning.

"Not now, Camille, please! Somebody might hear you." Camille giggled and decided to have pity on the Englishman sitting opposite her who still had the tendency to get very flustered and embarrassed at the mention of certain activities or emotions.

"Okay, sorry, I'll wait till later," she agreed.

Richard smiled in thanks and then blushed again at the thought of the fun they would have later if all went well.

"Um...." he changed the subject without making a very articulate start. "About our future...."

Camille felt a momentary blip of fear when she wondered if he was going to say he wasn't sure it would be such a good idea after all. _Perhaps I pushed him a bit too far by embarrassing him just now._

Outwardly, she remained calm and answered, "Yes, I was hoping we'd get a chance to talk about that this evening."

 _I hope she's not having second thoughts about being together,_ worried Richard.

Having stared possible defeat in the face when he thought he was losing Camille just a few days earlier, Richard decided to take the bull by both horns now. After all, it couldn't get any worse than that, could it?

"I think you know that I have strong feelings for you, Camille," he began.

When she raised her eyebrows and looked searchingly into his eyes, he took a deep breath and improved on his last statement. "Actually, to tell you the truth, I'm in love with you." He looked at her for reassurance and when he saw the way she was looking back at him, he continued. "I love you, Camille, and I think I would like to spend the rest of my life with you."

Camille reached for his hand and squeezed it. There were tears in her eyes when she replied, "I love you too, Richard. I want you more than I've ever wanted any other man. Do you think the rules of 'fraternisation' will be a problem, though?"

"Well, that's something I've been thinking about a lot. Technically, we actually work for different agencies; I am on secondment from the Metropolitan Police Force and you are employed by the Royal Sainte Marie Police Force. I know my status as Inspector officially outranks yours and makes me your boss at the station, but we may be able to request that, as we work for different agencies and both answer to the Commissioner, there might be a certain tolerance of our relationship provided we were discreet and didn't let it interfere in any way with our work."

"Hmm, the Commissioner was my boss independently when I was working undercover, too. He always seemed quite paternalistic towards me; perhaps that will be in our favour?"

"Let's hope so," said Richard sincerely. "I am prepared to do whatever it takes to make you happy, Camille, and to stay with you, even if it means re-thinking the job situation, but ideally it would be good if we could stay as we are at work."

"You know that I would go with you to London if need be, don't you?" she asked.

Richard squeezed her hand and said softly, "No woman has ever offered to go anywhere with me before, let alone leave home and go halfway round the world to be with me." He could hardly believe that someone as wonderful as Camille would want to be with him that much, particularly as she seemed so recently to have had the chance of a 'better' offer via Adam Kerry and his film star set.

Toward the end of the evening, after they had finished their meal and coffee and were about to leave, they bumped into Adam Kerry himself on the way out. He and some of the cast and crew were coming in for a late meal after a long day of work on their picture.

"Hello Camille!" He greeted her with a bright friendly smile.

"Adam, hi!" Camille responded equally cheerfully. She hoped that Richard would now be tolerant of Adam's presence and not be grumpy. "You remember my boss and....friend, Inspector Richard Poole?"

"Yes, nice to see you again, Inspector Poole."

"Oh, 'Richard', please," replied the Inspector as graciously as he could, given that he was still somewhat uneasy about Camille's meeting Adam again, however accidentally.

"Are you all eating here tonight?" Camille asked Adam. "I just wondered because it's a bit late."

"Well, Andre was very good about agreeing to fit us in at this hour," conceded Adam.

Clearly the restaurateur figured that the prestige of having the main cast and crew of a potential box office success outweighed the inconvenience of a late evening, and made an exception for the party.

"Well, I'd better join the rest of the gang. See you again soon," smiled Adam as he returned to his colleagues at their large table in the corner. He had guessed that Camille and Richard were most probably not dining at such an upmarket establishment purely for professional reasons, but was philosophical about it.

Never mind, he thought, Camille is lovely and it would have been nice to get to know her, but that's life.

 

"What did he mean by saying he hoped to see you again soon, Camille?" asked a slightly paranoid Richard as they stepped out into the night air.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Richard. I don't think he meant anything - he was just being friendly and polite. Why do you ask? Anyway, he might have meant both of us."

"I doubt that," answered a subdued Richard.

"Oh for goodness' sake, stop being so suspicious, Richard! It's _you_ that I want to be with, remember?" sighed a faintly exasperated Camille.

"Sorry," he apologised. "I guess I'm still a bit...you know..."

"What?" Camille inquired gently.

"Whatever," he shrugged, a little embarrassed by his obvious insecurity.

Camille didn't press it; she understood the man's hang ups by now and was even quite flattered by his jealousy. Instead, she said with a twinkle, "Come on, let's go back to your place and I'll show you how much I'd rather be with you than anyone else."

Richard gave her one of his spine-tingling looks and said, "You're on."

 

The following Saturday was to be a busy one. Richard and Camille had some free time and, provided no serious crimes were reported, they were at leisure to spend the day as they wished - shopping, sight-seeing or just plain 'liming'. Strolling down one of Sainte Marie's main streets towards one of its loveliest harbours, they could see Adam, Tania Wells and a number of others in their company.

Suddenly, a mighty ruckus broke out and there was an almost deafening sound of shots being fired. Tania screamed and Adam fell down, his lifeless form slumped piteously by her feet. There were more shots fired and more screaming, until the gunman was eventually wrestled to the ground. Tania continued to howl and wail, staring at Adam and crying out his name, tears falling in big streams down her mascara-stained cheeks.

"And....cut! Well done, guys, that's a print!" shouted out the director with obvious glee.

Adam got up and smiled and hugged a delighted Tania before spotting Camille and Richard in the small invited crowd that had gathered to watch the filming of the movie's final scene.

"Hey, I'm so glad you could make it!" he called out as he bounded over to them.

"We wouldn't have missed it," laughed Camille, with a fairly placid looking Richard standing beside her.

"Yes, if only all _our_ murder cases were make-believe," the latter replied, sporting his classic crooked half smile.

"So, what was the 'shooting' about then?" asked Camille, referring to Adam's cinematic death.

"Oh, Tania's character was being secretly stalked by a pathologically jealous ex boyfriend who decided that if _he_ couldn't have her, then no one would. He was trying to kill her, but got me instead and that's the picture's tragic ending that I was telling you about the other week," Adam explained. "It's not actually the end of filming as the movie's not being shot entirely in sequence _,_ but apart from some flashback scenes and studio voice-overs, my contribution is nearly done. Then it's back home to Canada next month, all being well."

"Well, I hope we'll get a chance to see you before you go, or at least say 'goodbye and good luck for the future'. Fingers crossed that the film will be a big hit for you all and you'll make the big time," wished Camille with a fond smile.

"Thanks, I hope so too - and it was really good meeting you both." Adam shook their hands firmly and with genuine warmth.

 

As they continued on back towards Honore and La Kaz where they were going to grab a bite of lunch, Richard turned to Camille and announced, "You know, that Adam Kerry is quite a nice young man really, isn't he?"

"Ye...es," answered Camille, wondering where this might be going. Then she added teasingly, "So, does that mean I should give him a chance then, after all?"

"Don't even think about it..." came the playful - but nonetheless heartfelt - response.

 

 

 


End file.
